Gwrtheyrnion

Map of the lands west of Offa's Dyke; Gwrtheyrnion can be seen in the centre

Gwrtheyrnion or Gwerthrynion was a commote in medieval Wales, located in Mid Wales on the north side of the River Wye; its historical centre was Rhayader. It is said to have taken its name from the legendary king Vortigern (Welsh: Gwrtheyrn). For most of the medieval era, it was associated with the cantref of Buellt and then Elfael, small regional kingdoms whose rulers operated independently of other powers. In the Norman era, like the rest of the region between Wye and Severn it came to be dominated by Marcher Lordships.

Name and boundaries

According to the 9th-century Historia Brittonum, Gwrtheyrnion, here Latinised Guorthegirnaim, was named after Vortigern (Welsh: Gwrtheyrn), a legendary 5th-century King of Britain. John Edward Lloyd considers this derivation accurate. Generally, its boundaries were the cantrefi of Arwystli to the north, Maelienydd (in its restricted sense) to the east, Elfael to the southeast, and Buellt to the southwest. It also controlled the commote of Deuddwr (ie. Cwmwd Deuddwr, also known as Elynydd) on the west of the Wye; together they formed a cantref.

History

Territories in and adjacent to the region between Wye and Severn

The Historia Brittonum provides the earliest mention of Gwrtheyrnion. According to the text, Vortigern fled to Gwrtheyrnion after Saint Germanus of Auxerre had castigated him for his various sins. He eventually died, and his son Pascent received Gwrtheyrnion and Buellt from Ambrosius Aurelianus..

One of the text's copyists, from whose copy most other surviving manuscripts are derived, took particular interest in this combined kingdom, tracing its medieval rulers back to Vortigern through Pascent. The dynasty, so these manuscripts report, ended in a certain Ffernfael ap Tewdwr, who is also known from the genealogies from Jesus College MS 20. These Jesus College genealogies indicate that Ffernfael's cousin Brawstudd married Arthfael Hen ap Rhys, the ruler of Morgannwg, implying a floruit for Ffernfael around the early 9th century.

Following Ffernfael's death, Buellt (and hence Gwrtheyrnion) came into the posession of neighbouring Arwystli, for unclear reasons, after having temporarily been in the possession of Seisyllwg, for an unclear amount of time. At around this time, Arwystli's ruler was Iorwerth Hirflawdd; when Iorworth's son Idnerth died, his realm was re-divided, with Buellt (including Gwrtheyrnion) going to Cadwr Gwenwyn (the rest of the realm - Arwystli - went to a different son).

Cadwr's grandson, and heir, married a granddaughter of Merfyn ap Rhodri, the king of Powys (this did not mean that Powys gained any authority over Buellt/Gwrtheyrnion); their grandson, and heir, was Elystan Glodrydd. Elystan Glodrydd conquered the adjacent land between the Wye and Severn - Ferlix (known also by various other spellings, such as Fferllys, Fferleg, and Fferregs) and incorporated it into his own realm. Elystan was succeeded by his son, Cadwgan, who was succeeded by his eldest son, Idnerth.

Following Idnerth's death, and that of his son, Madog, the retained parts of Ferlix were divided between Madog's sons: Cadwallon received most of the northern half, which became Maelienydd, while the remainder - Elfael - went to his brother, Einion Clud. Einion Clud was succeeded by his son, Einion o'r Porth.

Einion o'r Porth married Susanna, a daughter of Rhys ap Gruffydd, the ruling prince of Deheubarth. The only named ruler of Gwrtheyrnion in historic manuscripts is an Einion ap Rhys who visited the king in 1175, and was Rhys ap Gruffydd's son-in-law; unless this Einion ap Rhys is really a bodged reference to Einion o'r' Porth, then he, his father, and the consequently distinct line of rulers in Gwrtheyrnion, are otherwise entirely unknown. In 1177, Rhayader Castle was built in Gwrtheyrnion by Rhys ap Gruffydd.

After the Norman invasion, Rhwng Gwy a Hafren was nominally in the hands of Norman Marcher Lords, but their control was often tenuous and Welsh lords periodically re-established dominance.

In the 16th century, Gwrtheyrnion and the rest of Rhwng Gwy a Hafren were reorganised into the county of Radnorshire by the Laws in Wales Acts. It is currently part of the modern county of Powys.

References

• Davies, R. R. (2000). The Age of Conquest: Wales, 1063-1415. Oxford University Press. ISBN 0-19-820878-2. Retrieved November 9, 2009.
• Lloyd, John Edward (1912). A History of Wales from the Earliest Times to the Edwardian Conquest. Longmans, Green, and Co. Retrieved November 6, 2009.
• Owen, George (1892). Henry Owen (ed.). The Description of Penbrokshire. London: C. J. Clark.